PayPal Fee Calculator
Calculate PayPal transaction fees for goods and services payments, and how much to charge to receive a specific net amount.
PayPal’s fee structure (2024 US)
PayPal raised its Goods and Services rate from 2.9% + $0.30 to 3.49% + $0.49 in 2022, then held it through 2024. That bumped PayPal from “the same as Stripe” to “noticeably more expensive than Stripe” for most online merchants. The pricing tier you choose matters:
| Transaction type | Rate |
|---|---|
| Goods and Services (domestic) | 3.49% + $0.49 |
| Goods and Services (international) | +1.5% surcharge (total 4.99% + $0.49) |
| Currency conversion | +3% to 4% spread on PayPal’s exchange rate |
| Friends and Family (US) | Free (zero buyer/seller protection) |
| QR Code payments (in person) | 2.29% + $0.09 |
| Micropayments tier (apply directly) | 4.99% + $0.09 (under-$10 average) |
The math
fee = amount × rate + $0.49 (or $0.09 for micropayments) net = amount − fee
A $100 G&S domestic transaction: $100 × 0.0349 + $0.49 = $3.98 fee, $96.02 net. Compare to Stripe at $3.20 — PayPal costs roughly $0.78 more per $100. Multiplied across hundreds of transactions a month, it adds up.
Grossing up the invoice
To receive a target amount net:
invoice = (target + $0.49) ÷ (1 − rate)
To receive exactly $100: invoice = ($100 + $0.49) ÷ 0.9651 = $104.13. The customer pays $104.13, PayPal takes $4.13 in fees, you net $100.
Friends and Family — the trap that ends businesses
F&F is free. The buyer cannot dispute the charge through PayPal Buyer Protection. The seller has no PayPal-mediated recourse if the buyer requests a chargeback through their credit card issuer.
Never accept F&F for a business transaction. PayPal can:
- Freeze your account if their fraud team detects business activity classified as F&F (they call this “tax evasion” and they actively look for it)
- Permanently ban your account
- Hold funds in escrow for 180 days
The 3.49% fee is the cost of access to PayPal’s dispute infrastructure. Skipping it is the cheapest mistake you can make until it’s the most expensive.
Effective rate by transaction size (G&S domestic)
| Amount | Fee | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|
| $5 | $0.66 | 13.3% |
| $10 | $0.84 | 8.4% |
| $25 | $1.36 | 5.4% |
| $50 | $2.24 | 4.5% |
| $100 | $3.98 | 4.0% |
| $250 | $9.22 | 3.7% |
| $1,000 | $35.39 | 3.5% |
| $10,000 | $349.49 | 3.5% |
The $0.49 fixed cost punishes small transactions even harder than Stripe’s $0.30 does. Micropayments tier (4.99% + $0.09) becomes the better option below about $14 — calculate carefully.
PayPal vs Stripe — when to pick which
| Use case | Better choice |
|---|---|
| US-only e-commerce store | Stripe (cheaper, better dev tools) |
| Selling globally to consumers | PayPal (familiar, trusted in 200+ countries) |
| B2B invoicing in US/EU | Stripe Invoicing or direct bank transfer |
| Freelance one-off jobs from international clients | PayPal (sometimes the only option clients trust) |
| High dispute-rate industry | Stripe (better chargeback tools; though both will close risky accounts) |
| Crypto / regulated products | Neither (both refuse most of these) |
Many businesses accept both. PayPal at checkout typically lifts conversion 5 to 15% — many consumers refuse to enter credit card details on unfamiliar sites but happily click “Pay with PayPal.”
Account freezes — PayPal’s notorious risk
PayPal can freeze funds for up to 180 days “to protect the platform.” This happens most often when:
- A new business has its first big sale (sudden volume spike)
- A customer raises a dispute
- The account has irregular login patterns
- Activity moves between F&F and G&S
If $5,000+ of revenue lives in PayPal, sweep it to your bank account weekly. Many small businesses keep PayPal as a checkout option but transfer balances daily to avoid getting trapped during a freeze.
Withdrawal timing
Standard withdrawal: 1-2 business days, no fee. Instant transfer to linked debit card: 1.5% of the amount, $0.25 minimum, $15 maximum. Standard transfer is almost always the right choice.
Tax (US)
PayPal issues 1099-K when transactions exceed federal thresholds (currently $5,000, dropping to $600 in coming years). The 1099 covers G&S only — F&F is invisible to PayPal’s reporting (which is why people abuse it, but see “the trap” above).